Biz Bits: Business news from Snohomish County

PeopleThe Board of Directors for the Edmonds Chamber of Commerce has welcomed Kyle Vixie as its new president and CEO. He will begin his new role Monday. Vixie brings 13 years of experience in nonprofit and community engagement work to the chamber. Previously he served as the executive director of the Washington State Medical Group Management Association and director of events and community partnerships for the Downtown Seattle Association.Two new agents joined Windermere Real Estate's Mukilteo location. Michelle Dotinga previously worked at Xerox in Tukwila. Melissa Fischer comes to Windermere from managing the Arco AM/PM in Woodinville. She recently helped raise funds through the Everett Eagles for the UW Premature Baby Research Center. Janet Hall, Mountlake Terrace's traffic engineer, has earned professional traffic operations engineer certification. This certification demonstrates her knowledge, skill and ability in the specialized application of traffic operations engineering. Certification requirements include having at least four years of experience in professional traffic operations engineering and passing a six-hour exam. KudosDave's Burgers, a family-run drive-through in Lynnwood, has been selected for the 2013 Best of Lynnwood Award in the Restaurants category. Each year, the Lynnwood Award Program identifies companies they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. Winners are determined based on information gathered both internally by the program and through data provided by third parties.Good deedsElle Marie Hair Studio recently distributed funds from its seventh annual Pink Hair 2 Save a Pair fundraiser. Money was raised during the months of October and November as the public was invited to have a pink hair extension applied for a $10 donation. More than $4,000 was raised, with an additional $2,000 coming in through donations. Since 2007, Elle Marie has raised over $17,000 toward breast cancer awareness.Mukilteo-based Diamond Knot Craft Brewing donated more than $2,200 and winter clothing to Domestic Violence Services of Snohomish County through this year's Coats for Kids drive. Donations were accepted at all Diamond Knot locations during December. This is the fourth year for the brewery's "Coats for Kids" drive.EventsEarly Bird registration discounts end Tuesday for Pacific Northwest Aerospace Alliance's 13th Annual Aerospace Conference "What's Driving Change in the Aerospace Industry," which comes to Lynnwood on Feb. 4 through 6. This year's conference brings more than 35 speakers from the world's leading aerospace companies to Lynnwood for three days to help suppliers understand changes in the industry. To register, go to tinyurl.com/l95lr6r or email contact@pnaa.net for more information.Agility Recovery and the U.S. Small Business Administration will offer a free webinar from 11 to noon Jan. 14. The "2013 Year-in-Review: Valuable Lessons & Best Practices" webinar will look at how small- and large-scale disasters in 2013 caused business interruptions and the lessons learned. Space is limited. Register at www1.gotomeeting.com/register/711599609.AnnouncementsIt is time to submit nominations for the 2014 Edmonds Chamber Arts Awards. Visit www.edmondswa.com/awards for descriptions of each category and an online nomination form to nominate your favorite partners and volunteers. Hard copies are available at the Chamber office at 121 5th Ave. N. in Edmonds. Nominations are due by Feb. 18. Selected arts heroes will be honored at a public awards ceremony on March 20.MRSC Rosters, a program of the Seattle-based non-profit Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington, is making construction and consulting businesses aware of small government projects through a free online roster application. Washington cities, counties, and special purpose districts statewide use MRSC Rosters to connect with businesses, including 45 Snohomish County public agencies. For more information, visit the website at www.mrscrosters.orgThe Washington State Department of Revenue has started an education effort about the taxability of medical marijuana. Several hundred businesses and organizations that provide medical marijuana, "medibles," and related products, should receive letters explaining the taxes that apply to their transactions. The letters were mailed Jan. 3. Businesses should comply by Jan. 24.The State Auditor's Office published a performance audit on improving the timeliness of state agency business permits, their second in a series of audits on state regulatory reform. This performance audit finds agencies and businesses don't always know how long processes take because not all agencies measure permitting times or provide that information online. The full report is available at http://www.sao.wa.gov/AuditReports/AuditReportFiles/ar1010778.pdfBiz Bits runs Monday through Saturday in The Herald and on Monday at HeraldNet.com/bizblog. Send your news and high-resolution color photos to businessnews@heraldnet.com.

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